IRS: Over 2000 Big Earners Paid No Tax in 2000
Thu June 26, 2003 03:02 PM ET
By Jonathan Nicholson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than 2,000 individuals with incomes of $200,000 or more paid zero in federal income taxes in the year 2000, according to a report released by the Internal Revenue Service on Thursday.

not only that, but it appears that once again the rich are getting richer while the rest of us....stay pretty much where we are.

Quote:

Very Richest's Share of Income Grew Even Bigger, Data Show

The 400 wealthiest taxpayers accounted for more than 1 percent of all the income in the United States in the year 2000, more than double their share just eight years earlier, according to new data from the Internal Revenue Service. But their tax burden plummeted over the period.

I would like to know what the incomes of these top 400 are before I start making a judgment. $38.6 million may be pocket change for them, whereas the burden is far more problematic for lower and middle income people.

As for the tax burden, NY Times data is telling the whole story. The burden has been taken off the top 400 because the middle class is increasing. And more people are making $200,000 a year -- enough to be considered "rich" by government standards. It doesn't mean the government is getting less money, it just means that there are more average americans being able to pay the extra.

I get so sick of hearing about Gore etc. talking about how rich people would get more money back under tax cuts. percentage-wise, its not much of a difference. But if you put more in, you get more out when cuts come around.

1. The headline "Pay No Taxes" is completely misleading. These 2000 managed to generate sufficient deductions (like payment of state taxes) to eliminate federal income taxes. The article also does not address other Federal taxes, for which there are no deductions. These folks didn't simply take home their entire paycheck.

2. The idea that

Quote:

the rich are getting richer

is a self-fulfilling prophecy. It will always take more money to be in the top 400.